— @TonyRomm: “Sprint confirms to me what we suspected: the ‘5,000 jobs announced today are part of the 50,000 jobs that [SoftBank Chairman Masayoshi Son] previously announced’” Storyhttp://politi.co/2ikjkcs

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — ROSS WORTHINGTON, a longtime Newt Gingrich aide, is joining the Trump White House as a speechwriter.

Good Thursday morning. Margaret Carlson, the Bloomberg News columnist who met with Donald Trump yesterday, emails Playbook with a download. “No trace of the agitated tweeter. He also spent time at David Rubenstein’s table. Then the Obama phone call overtook everything. Debbie Reynolds! A mother’s love is a thing of wonder. As Trump would tweet. Sad.”

TRUMP spoke to the press gathered at Mar-a-Lago yesterday evening, touching on several topics.

ON HIS TRANSITION PARTNERSHIP WITH THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION: “Our staffs have been getting along very well and I’m getting along very well with him other than a couple of statements that I responded to and we talked about it and smiled about it and nobody is ever going to know because we are never going to be going against each other.”

— ON ALLEGATIONS OF RUSSIAN HACKING: “I think we ought to get on with our lives. I think that computers have complicated lives very greatly. The whole age of computer has made it where nobody knows exactly what is going on. We have speed, we have a lot of other things, but I’m not sure we have the kind of security we need.”

— ON ISRAEL: “I’m very very strong on Israel. I think that Israel has been treated very very unfairly by a lot of different people. If you look at resolutions in the United Nations … they are up for 20 reprimands and other nations that are horrible places, horrible places that treat people horribly haven’t even been reprimanded. So there is something going on and I think it is very unfair to Israel.”

— ON THE U.S.’S FUTURE IN THE U.N., per pooler Andrew Beatty of AFP: “The UN has such tremendous potential, it’s not living up to its potential … When do you see the United Nations solving problems? They don’t. They cause problems. So if it lives up to its potential, it’s a great thing. If it doesn’t, it’s a waste of time.”

UNDERSTANDING TRUMP —“What’s really bugging Trump about Obama,” by Isaac Dovere and Josh Dawsey: “Donald Trump can’t decide whether he thinks the transition of power is going well or not. But he knows he doesn’t like how much attention Barack Obama is getting and is also bothered by what Trump and his closest advisers see as an active effort to poke the president-elect and undermine the incoming administration with last-minute policy changes on his way out of office, according to two people close to the transition.

“And the relationship is likely to get worse in the three weeks until the inauguration: Obama is scheduled to give a farewell address Jan. 10 that is expected to be a recounting of his successes and an inherent contrast with Trump and the administration is rushing to make public a report on Russian hacking during the election that intelligence officials say was done to help Trump, though the president-elect has disputed that entirely.” http://politi.co/2iGYrcj

TOP TWEET – Bloomberg’s @StevenTDennis: “For Trump to match Obama’s stock market performance, the Dow would have to hit about 50,000 in 2024.”

CABINET WATCH — “Trump makes last-minute push to add Hispanic to Cabinet,” by Tara Palmeri and Josh Dawsey: “President-elect Donald Trump, who repeatedly lashed out at Mexican immigrants during the campaign, is scrambling to appoint a Hispanic official to serve in his Cabinet amid criticism that his incoming administration lacks diversity at the highest levels. The search has intensified in recent days, and sources within the transition say that officials are determined to have a Hispanic in a prominent role. According to a transition official, Trump has narrowed his focus to agriculture secretary as the best possibility of the few remaining openings, which also include veterans affairs and the U.S. trade representative. Trump met Wednesday with two Hispanic politicians at his resort Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach to discuss the possibility of taking on the agriculture post: Dr. Elsa Murano, a former U.S. agriculture undersecretary for food safety, who is Cuban-American, and Abel Maldonado, a Mexican-American who is a former California lieutenant governor and co-owner of Runway Vineyards.” http://politi.co/2ikmxJa

****** A message from the Stop The HIT Coalition: Starting as early as February 1, 2017, the Health Insurance Tax (HIT) will raise health insurance premiums even higher. That’s right. Unless Congress takes action now, the HIT will soon return—further driving up premiums. There’s no time to lose. Congress must Stop the HIT. Once and for all. ******

FIRST FAMILY – NYT A1, “For the Trumps, ‘Made in U.S.A.’ May Be a Tricky Label to Stitch,” by Laura M. Holson and Rachel Abrams: “Almost all of her goods are made overseas, according to a New York Times review of shipments compiled separately by Panjiva and ImportGenius, two trade databases. ImportGenius tallied 193 shipments for imported goods associated with Ms. Trump for the year through Dec. 5, mostly Chinese-made shoes and handbags. Her dresses and blouses are made in China, Indonesia and Vietnam, according to a review of hundreds of clothing tags and financial documents filed by G-III.” http://nyti.ms/2igJwlR

— HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: “Reclusive Marvel CEO Ike Perlmutter Photographed in Public at Trump Event,” by Erik Hayden: “Ike Perlmutter, the CEO of Marvel Entertainment, has been photographed in public — a rare instance for the reclusive mogul. Perlmutter met with Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Wednesday and was photographed by Jonathan Ernst for Reuters … The image shows a sunglasses-wearing Perlmutter and Trump peering out of a window. Perlmutter was helping organize a health summit with the president-elect at Trump’s Florida retreat. Unlike executives at other major studios and networks, the 74-year-old Marvel CEO has been photographed very few times over the years. Perlmutter was said to have showed up at 2008’s Iron Man premiere in disguise, Hollywood Reporter editor-at-large Kim Masters reported in a definitive 2014 profile of the mogul. Getty Images and Associated Press photo databases currently show zero results for Perlmutter.” http://bit.ly/2hQ3DpU … 2014 profile of Perlmutterhttp://bit.ly/2hyET9G

PETER BAKER on A1 of the NYT from JERUSALEM: “In John Kerry’s Mideast Speech, a Clash of Policies and Personalities” (print headline: Two-State Plan Nears the End Of Its Shelf Life): “Mr. Kerry’s much-anticipated Middle East speech brought together four giant personalities representing two radically divergent worldviews in one momentous clash. On one side was Mr. Kerry, venting years of frustration on behalf of President Obama and himself at what they consider Israeli intransigence. On the other were Mr. Netanyahu and Mr. Trump, firing back at what they deemed a hypocritical betrayal of America’s closest friend in the Middle East. If Mr. Obama and Mr. Kerry were playing for history, Mr. Netanyahu and Mr. Trump were playing for time. The departing administration intended for the speech to lay out a path to peace that they had tried to take, hoping to salvage some scrap of a legacy on the issue. The incoming administration and its Israeli ally were busy counting the days until the old team will be swept from the stage and a new Israeli-American alignment redefines the politics of the region.” http://nyti.ms/2hrJaqD

MIDEAST TWEETS — @barak_ehud: “@JohnKerry Powerful, lucid speech. World & majority in Israel think the same. Bibi, on verge of messianic abyss, determined to go forward” … Israeli opposition leader Isaac Herzog (@HerzogMK): “John Kerry has always been a great friend of Israel and will always be. His speech expresses true concerns about Israels wellbeing & future.” … Hussein Ibish (@Ibishblog): “If Kerry had given this speech 3 years ago or more – and backed up by real policies with consequences – would have been historic. Not now.” … @peterbakernyt: “Kerry’s principles largely follow longtime US orthodoxy — two state solution, Jerusalem as capital for both, security, normalized relations.”

— WaPo: “How the U.S. came to abstain on a U.N. resolution condemning Israeli settlements,” by Karen DeYoung, with Carol Morello and Bob Costa. http://wapo.st/2hyhllm

HILLWATCH — “Pelosi: GOP’s response to guns sit-in an ‘inside power grab,’” by Heather Caygle: “House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi accused Republicans Wednesday of attempting a ‘power grab’ to snuff out free speech on the House floor with their controversial new rules package. ‘While the American people worry for the financial security of their families, Republicans are opening the new Congress by turning their backs on the outside calls for help with an inside power grab in the House Rules,’ Pelosi (D-Calif.) wrote in a letter to colleagues ahead of a Thursday caucus call. The proposed Republican rules changes would give the sergeant-at-arms the power to punish members for taking pictures or video on the House floor by deducting fines up to to $2,500 directly from lawmakers’ paychecks.” http://politi.co/2itEDWb

— “Diane Black poised to replace Price as budget committee chair,” by Rachael Bade: “[Tennessee] Rep. Diane Black is the leading candidate to chair the House Budget Committee, likely leap-frogging more senior panel members to become the first woman to head the high-profile panel, Republican leadership sources told POLITICO.” http://politi.co/2igWIY4

SAD — “Debbie Reynolds, who sang and danced to fame in ‘Singin’ in the Rain,’ dies at 84,” by the L.A. Times’ Valerie Nelson: “Debbie Reynolds’ life was the stuff of movie legend, from her start as an ingenue playing opposite Gene Kelly in the classic 1952 musical ‘Singin’ in the Rain,’ to her part in one of Hollywood’s most notorious scandals. And her death Wednesday at the age of 84 had the kind of tragic story line Hollywood made famous, coming only one day after her daughter, Carrie Fisher, died at the age of 60. Reynolds’ son, Todd, told media outlets that his mother was under stress over the death of her daughter and suffered a stroke at her home at about noon. Reynolds told him she missed her daughter and wanted to be with her.

“On Tuesday, Reynolds had posted a statement on Facebook about the outpouring of grief about her daughter’s unexpected death. Fisher, a well-known actress and author in her own right, died four days after suffering a cardiac incident on a flight from London back to Los Angeles. ‘Thank you to everyone who has embraced the gifts and talents of my beloved and amazing daughter,’ she wrote. ‘I am grateful for your thoughts and prayers that are now guiding her to her next stop. Love Carries Mother.’” http://lat.ms/2hvb8Vz … Singin in the Rain trailerhttp://bit.ly/2iHRvaB

— N.Y. POST COVER: “Debbie Reynolds dies a day after daughter … ‘I WANT TO BE WITH CARRIE’ … and then she was gone” http://nyp.st/2algwpl

–HUFFPOST and DRUDGE earlier this morning had the same exact banner, a rare occurrence: “DEBBIE REYNOLDS DEAD — ‘SHE WANTED TO BE WITH CARRIE’”

Playbook Reads

WSJ A-HED — “It’s Easy to Communicate on Twitter — Unless You’re a U.S. Bureaucrat,” by Aruna Viswanatha and Natalie Andrews: “In 2010, a top Justice Department official told the agency’s divisions they could set up Twitter accounts and he convened a ‘working group’ to provide guidance on what, when and how the agency could tweet. They’re still working on it. President-elect Donald Trump is poised to become the first tweeter-in-chief, an executive comfortable making pronouncements on policy or companies with 140 characters. He will assume control of a federal bureaucracy that tries very hard to do the exact opposite, one that muffles its social-media presence under pages of rules to avoid making waves.

“At the Justice Department, officials from the deputy attorney general’s office, the public affairs office, privacy lawyers, records management staffers and others are still trying to answer questions such as: When can staffers publicly distribute links to media articles? (Likely answer: rarely.) What if a U.S. attorney wrote the article? (Then it could be OK.) How about when the staffer herself is quoted in a story? (Never; it might look like she’s endorsing that publication.) The [EPA] has four documents, totaling 29 pages, that outline its procedures for using social media. ‘There are no waivers from this policy,’ the first document says. By definition, government tweets herald a clash between a careful, sometimes cumbersome culture and a phenomenon built on rapid-fire messages packed with spontaneous humor or zingers.” http://on.wsj.com/2hyBuYi

LAME DUCK WATCH — “Obama designates two new national monuments in the West,” by L.A. Times’ William Yardley: “Further burnishing his environmental legacy, President Obama on Wednesday designated two new national monuments in rugged areas of Utah and Nevada –places that have deep cultural importance for Native Americans but that have become flashpoints in the debate over control of public land in the West. The larger and perhaps more controversial of the two, the Bears Ears National Monument in southeastern Utah, encompasses 1.35 million acres of desert and canyons that are ancestral lands of several Indian tribes, including the Navajo Nation, whose reservation is just to the south. … While both national monuments will be open for recreation, their designation means they will be better protected from development such as mining and oil and gas production. In the West, where half of the land is controlled by the federal government, many states and elected officials have long accused the government of putting up barriers to local economic development.” http://lat.ms/2it19i2

WILD STORY — BOSTON GLOBE: “How could so few legislators pass a marijuana delay?,” by Matt Rocheleau: “Just a half-dozen Massachusetts legislators passed a measure Wednesday that delayed, by six months, the opening date for recreational marijuana stores in Massachusetts. How could so few lawmakers meeting in an informal session decide such an important issue? The move, which took less than an hour, was extraordinary, but technically allowed. Here’s how it works.

“First, keep in mind that legislative cycles in Massachusetts run on two-year calendars, beginning in odd-numbered years. So currently, we are at the end of a two-year cycle that began in 2015. There are two types of meetings lawmakers can hold: formal and informal. Formal sessions are normally reserved for discussion, debate, and voting on major issues. But during the first year of a legislative cycle, formal business must be wrapped up by the third Wednesday in November. During the second year of a cycle — such as this year — formal session can be held through the last day in July. During periods when formal sessions are barred, lawmakers can resort to ‘informals’ to get things done. Informals tend to have sparse attendance and are generally reserved for voting on measures that are noncontroversial, of relatively minor importance, or both. Think bridge names and liquor licenses. A key reason for that: In an informal session, a measure is not allowed to pass if even a single legislator present voices an objection. But all that is required for lawmakers to enter informals and pass a measure is to have at least one Republican and at least one Democrat present.” http://bit.ly/2iahlHe

JESSE JACKSON JR. DIVORCING … — “Ex-Ald. Sandi Jackson says she’s borrowing from friends and selling belongings,” by the Chicago Tribune’s Katherine Skiba: “Former Chicago Ald. Sandi Jackson, who is seeking a divorce from ex-U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., said in court filings this week that he has income of at least $10,250 a month while she is out of work and has been borrowing from friends and selling her belongings to stay afloat. Sandi Jackson filed for divorce in Washington, while her husband filed in Cook County. The former Democratic lawmakers pleaded guilty to felonies in 2013 and later completed staggered terms in federal prison.” http://trib.in/2hPERGk

AARON SCHOCK WATCH — Former Rep. Aaron Schock asked a court to delay his trial on 24 criminal charges until July 2017. Yesterday, the U.S. attorney prosecuting him said he had no problem with that. The federal prosecutor said he expects the trial to last between four and six weeks, with 100 witnesses testifying. A summer trial in Springfield is coming up!

****** A message from the Stop The HIT Coalition: Starting as early as February 1, 2017, small businesses, seniors and hardworking families will start feeling the Health Insurance Tax (HIT) once again. That’s right. Unless Congress takes action now, the HIT will return — further driving up premiums for small businesses, seniors and hard-working families. There’s no time to lose. Congress must Stop the HIT. Once and for all. ******

HOT ON THE LEFT — “Why Paul Ryan Is So Desperate To Vote On Obamacare Repeal Quickly,” by HuffPost’s Jonathan Cohn: “Even conservative experts doubt this gambit would work out so neatly. Insurers that tolerated early losses in Obamacare marketplaces in the hopes of realizing future profits aren’t going to stick around for a market that’s about to disappear ― particularly if the repeal bill also takes actions, such as eliminating the individual mandate, that would tilt the insurance customer base even more toward unhealthy people with high medical expenses. If enough carriers flee, a recent analysis from the Urban Institute predicted, millions of people would lose their health insurance in just the first year.” http://huff.to/2iHDbyQ

CLICKERS – “Politico’s Best Photos of 2016”: “Politico photographers M. Scott Mahaskey and John Shinkle pick their best of the year, from Kentucky to Capitol Hill.” 49 keepershttp://politi.co/2hrul7i

MEDIAWATCH — “Reporting while Muslim: how I covered the US presidential election,” by The Guardian’s Sabrina Siddiqui: http://bit.ly/2hpN1Vc

— HADAS GOLD: “MSNBC ad campaign touts new role for Morning Joe: The place for breaking news”: A new ad campaign for MSNBC is reframing ‘Morning Joe’ in a new way: as the place to get breaking news about what the Trump administration has in the works. One television commercial features images of ‘Morning Joe’ with a narrator saying the show ‘has the inside track … getting the inside story before it break’ as clips of Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski run saying ‘Joe was first to report’ and ‘People very close to Donald Trump … ‘ adding that the show reports ‘from Pennsylvania Avenue to Fifth Avenue, and every main street in between.’ A print ad went even further — a photo of Scarborough and Brzezinski with the words ‘Daily intelligence briefings happen here.’ The show, which for nearly a decade has prided itself for being the TV home for the political and media elite up and down the Acela corridor, has been breaking news about the incoming administration with regularity in recent weeks.” http://politi.co/2irOcoC … One of the adshttp://on.msnbc.com/2iFHBKF

— “Donald Trump was a boon to cable news, but entertainment network ratings eroded in 2016,” by the L.A. Times’ Stephen Battaglio: “Presidential politics was stranger than fiction in 2016 and that made it a good year to be in the cable news business. All three major cable news networks had their largest audiences ever, thanks to the drawing power of the nonstop surprises of the 2016 White House campaign that culminated with the election of Donald Trump.

“Year-end numbers from Nielsen showed that the 21st Century Fox-owned Fox News Channel was the most-watched network in all of cable with an average of 2.43 million viewers in prime time, up 36% over last year. Only the four major broadcast networks had a larger audience. Both Fox News competitors finished in the top 10 among ad-supported networks, with Time Warner’s CNN averaging 1.29 million viewers, up 77%, and NBCUniversal’s MSNBC seeing an 88% gain with 1.1 million viewers. Political coverage also helped give the Fox Business Network its best year ever. Its audience grew 83% and topped CNBC for the first time in the fourth quarter.” http://lat.ms/2huX6U3

–“Resurgent ‘Today’ show has December ratings milestone,” by AP’s David Bauder: “In what could signal a changing of the guard in morning television, NBC’s ‘Today’ show has eclipsed ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’ in popularity for the first month that did not include the Olympics in four and a half years. ‘Today’ averaged 4.79 million viewers in December to 4.69 million for ‘Good Morning America’ … The last Olympics-free month NBC won was June 2012.” https://yhoo.it/2iHL1wD

FUN READ — “HGTV Will Never Upset You: How the Network Beat CNN in 2016,” by Bloomberg’s Gerry Smith: “Hillary Clinton said she likes ‘Love It or List It’ and ‘Beachfront Bargain Hunt,’ calling them ‘relaxing, entertaining and informative.’ The escapist appeal of looking at other people’s beautiful homes turned Home & Garden Television into the third most-watched cable network in 2016, ahead of CNN and behind only Fox News and ESPN. Riding HGTV’s reality shows, parent company Scripps Networks Interactive Inc. has seen its shares rise more than 30 percent this year … HGTV’s formula is relentlessly consistent: a shabby house gets a makeover, and a happy couple moves in. A variation on the theme — house-flipping for fun and profit — works too. The network has aired 23 different flipping shows over the past few years.” http://bloom.bg/2itmcRJ

ENGAGED — Sarah Rozier, House Financial Services Committee comms director (and long-time Hensarling aide), got engaged on Christmas morning to Paul Flaim II, “a master mechanic and all-around wonderful guy. Flaim conspired with Rozier’s beloved family in Texas to surprise her at Christmas and popped the question Christmas morning with those closest to her there as witnesses. Rozier said yes joyfully and the couple has been on cloud nine ever since.” Pichttp://bit.ly/2iay5hx

BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Kevin Griffis, assistant secretary for public affairs at HHS, celebrating on the hiking trails in the woods on the California coast, in Big Sur, with his partner Kristin Lee — read his Playbook Plus Q&A: http://politi.co/2hrVTt7

****** A message from the Stop The HIT Coalition: Starting as early as February 1, 2017, small businesses, seniors and hardworking families will start feeling the Health Insurance Tax (HIT) once again. That’s right. Unless Congress takes action now, the HIT will return — further driving up premiums for small businesses, seniors and hard-working families. There’s no time to lose. Congress must Stop the HIT. Once and for all. ******

The host of TYT Network's nationally-syndicated Bill Press Show (Monday-Friday from 7-9am ET), Press attends the daily White House press briefing and writes a weekly column for the powerhouse politics website The Hill.